Midland Park Mall Bans Concealed Handguns

MIDLAND- If you want to shop at the Midland Park Mall, you can't carry your concealed weapon. They're banned, for safety reasons.

The Midland Park Mall has recently posted signs at some of the entrances informing customers about the ban. But not all the entrances into the mall have them.

The sign is basically stating that any person who is licensed to carry a concealed handgun may not enter this property with the concealed handgun.

The Dillard's and Sears entrances do not have the signs posted. But resident, John-Mark Echols feels this policy will hurt the malls business.

"Basically disarming law biding citizens and creating a zone of people that are unarmed that criminals know about. So you're creating a victim zone," Echols said.

According to the Simon Mall website, they own or have interest in over 300 retail real estate properties in North America. The Midland Park Mall Manager sent us a statement that reads: "Possession of any weapon at Simon malls, whether concealed or displayed openly, is in violation of mall policy. This policy is intended first and foremost to maintain a safe, secure and comfortable environment at our malls."

The statement goes on to say: "Simon Malls are private property, and like virtually every other facility in the community that is accessible by the public, ownership/management has the right to prohibit the possession of weapons, both displayed or concealed, other than licensed weapons carried by law enforcement personnel."

The Mall Manager says that this is not a new policy.

However, Echols understands that this is the mall's right to not allow weapons, however, he thinks overall this could affect business.

"It's their right, it's their property. The law in Texas says they can prohibit firearms from your personal property. The only way for me to exercise my right is to not shop there and to go somewhere else," Echols said.

Whether or not this will affect the business of the Midland Park Mall is not known. However, in Texas with the election coming up, both major candidates, Republican Greg Abbott and Democrat Wendy Davis agree on supporting open carry gun laws. An issue that Texans have always had strong feelings about.